Mercedes-Benz GD290, The Legendary Tough Jeep

Monday, March 20, 2017

Hello Achilles mates! According to the pooling result in the Instagram, we will review your choice of sport cars. This week, the most voted car from you is Mercedes-Benz GD290.

In 1972, Mercedes-Benz’s engineers in Stuttgart received an important task that is to design a car with off-road capability but with maximum comfort and security. After long research and development, they created one of the most popular and legendary jeep in the world, called Mercedes-Benz G-Class.

As time goes by, the car produced in Mercedes factory in Graz, came up with numerous series and generation. One of favorite series by off-roaders and collectors is GD290 model 461 produced in 1990 - 2001. The 461 model has different body design, starting from passengers’ body up to military style.

In March this year, Achilles team received invitation from a collector to make a photo shots on one of his collectable cars, and guess what, the car he meant was Mercedes-Benz GD290 model 461 of 1991. When we arrived, we were surprised to see that it is military edition of GD290. Since this type of GD290 is rare in Indonesia, we may even count using one hand.

From the outside, this two doors jeep has a long wheel base, judging from the long distance between front and rear tire. This jeep is painted green, identical to military, while the roof is soft-top with camouflage motif, adding military aura to this car. On the front, grill and head lamp are covered with solid bull bar, ready to conquer the most challenging terrain ever.

On the inside, we can feel more on the military style. Instead of luxury interior like other Mercedes, this jeep does not have second row for passenger seats, but behind the driver’s seat there is two rows of chairs facing each other, so more passengers can fit into this car. Nevertheless, the seats are leather bound covered. The other unique thing is there are two levers in the center console. The long lever is for gear, while the shorter one is for 4X4 axle. But, it is also surprising that you get the comfortable feeling when the car is running, considering the minimal interior.

To power this jeep, Mercedes put Diesel engine with capacity of 2,900cc. This engine can release 123hp. With this power, this jeep can conquer any rough terrains ever exist.

For the tire, the owner only uses Achilles Desert Hawk XMT for his beloved GD290. According to him, this tire has aggressive tread design making the GD290 has powerful traction, especially used during off road. He also said that Desert Hawk XMT has very strong side wall. So, he is confident when passing a rough terrain, knowing that the tires will not get punctured by sharp object coming from the side. He added that this tire has a macho design, unlike other similar tires from other brands. These features only strengthen the macho and military style of this jeep.

Overall, this Mercedes-Benz GD290 is a complete jeep. It is capable of conquering difficult terrains, but remains comfortable and safe like any other Mercedes. No wonder this car is legendary among collectors.

Keep following Achilles on Instagram, because on the next weekend, you can choose the car that we want to review. Certainly with more great cars to come!